The Price
Arthur Miller has written some of America’s most successful plays of the 20th Century that include award-winners Death of a Salesman, The Crucibles and All My Sons. His play, The Price, written in 1968, is the production being featured now at Theatre West in Los Angeles.
Victor Franz (Cal Bartlett) is a long-time policeman readying for retirement. Cal gave up his education (he wanted to be a scientist) in order to care for his aging and downtrodden father who lost everything in the depression. His brother Walter (Don Moss), on the other hand, walked away from the family and became a successful surgeon. With the parents both gone, and the apartment in which the two boys became estranged now being readied for tear-down, Victor needs to dispose of its furnishings. He has tried in vain to contact Walter to give him a say in the disposition, but after his futile attempts, he takes it upon himself to make the arrangements by calling Gregory Solomon (still spunky Marvin Kaplan), an 89-year old furniture appraiser. While haggling over “the price,” and being prodded by his wife Esther (Dianne Travis), Victor finally accepts what he believes to be a fair price for the furnishings. However, the three of them are suddenly surprised by the arrival of Walter who has other ideas as to how to dispose of everything.
Since Victor points out that he made a deal with Solomon for a “price,” the two brothers ask Solomon to go into another room while they try to decide what to do. As the two brothers have different views on values in life, so do they have on the value of the furnishings in the apartment. They both come to realize that a “price” is to be paid for all of the choices that they made in their lives, so be it with the furnishings.
Miller’s characters all seem to struggle with responsibilities and guilt. This play offers the same type of individuals, but because of its long, drawn-out and repetitive dialogue, it is not one of his better plays. None of the characters are too likeable save for Gregory Solomon (performed so well by Kaplan), and the play seems to drag on too long.
The Price is directed by Stu Berg, set design by Jeff Rack. It will continue Fridays and Saturday at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. through March 21, at Theatre West, 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. West, in Los Angeles. Tickets are available by calling (323) 851-7977 or online at www.theatrewest.org.